Platoon (1986)

A young soldier in Vietnam faces a moral crisis when confronted with the horrors of war and the duality of man.

Director:

Oliver Stone

Writer:

Oliver Stone

Stars:

Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe

Top Rated Movies #215 | Won 4 Oscars. Another 20 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Keith David	...	King
Forest Whitaker	...	Big Harold
Francesco Quinn	...	Rhah
Kevin Dillon	...	Bunny
John C. McGinley	...	Sgt. O'Neill
Reggie Johnson	...	Junior
Mark Moses	...	Lt. Wolfe
Corey Glover	...	Francis
Johnny Depp	...	Lerner
Chris Pedersen	...	Crawford
Bob Orwig	...	Gardner
Corkey Ford	...	Manny
David Neidorf	...	Tex
Tom Berenger	...	Sgt. Barnes
Willem Dafoe	...	Sgt. Elias

Storyline

Chris Taylor is a young, naive American who gives up college and volunteers for combat in Vietnam. Upon arrival, he quickly discovers that his presence is quite nonessential, and is considered insignificant to the other soldiers, as he has not fought for as long as the rest of them and felt the effects of combat. Chris has two non-commissioned officers, the ill-tempered and indestructible Staff Sergeant Robert Barnes and the more pleasant and cooperative Sergeant Elias Grodin. A line is drawn between the two NCOs and a number of men in the platoon when an illegal killing occurs during a village raid. As the war continues, Chris himself draws towards psychological meltdown. And as he struggles for survival, he soon realizes he is fighting two battles, the conflict with the enemy and the conflict between the men within his platoon.

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Plot Keywords:

vietnam war | gore | combat fatigue | gunfire | automatic weapon | 

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Taglines:

The first casualty of war is innocence.

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

PA

Did You Know?

Trivia

John C. McGinley's mother was still recovering from brain surgery during filming. He later said that his manic freak-outs near the end of were mostly real, the result of him mentally trying to cope with the grueling intensity of the shoot.

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Goofs

The opening scene says "1967." However, the M16s the troops were carrying were the M16A1, which was only introduced in 1969 to replace the original M16. The open, three-prong flash suppressor used up to the end of 1968, was replaced by the closed circular flash suppressor in 1969.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Pvt. Gardner: [seeing body bags] Oh, man. Is that what I think it is?
Sergeant: All right, you cheese-dicks, welcome to the Nam. Follow me!

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Alternate Versions

TV version has much of its dialogue redubbed and shots refilmed, replacing such lines as "He thinks he's Jesus F---in' Christ!" with "He thinks he's George Freakin' Washington!"

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Connections

Referenced in Roll Bounce (2005)

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Soundtracks

OH! SUSANNA
(1848) (uncredited)
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Foster
Sung a cappella offscreen by 'Keith David'

User Reviews

Excellent look at Vietnam

This certainly rates as one of the best Vietnam films of all time. What I especially enjoyed was the realistic atmosphere of the film, entrenching the viewer into a world which seems surreal yet believable. Oliver Stone's real-life experience in Vietnam brought a gifted outlook to this film, one drawn by experience, not common Hollywood conventions. While this proved be a lesser film to the equally amazing Full Metal Jacket, it was not by much. The performances by Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Charlie Sheen and John C. McGinley were exceptional, capturing the plight of the tortured soldiers.

Details

Official Sites:

MGM [United States] Official site

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English Vietnamese

Release Date:

6 February 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Platoon

Filming Locations:

Luzon, Philippines

Box Office

Budget:

$6,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$241,080, 21 December 1986

Gross USA:

$138,530,565

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$138,545,632

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hemdale, Cinema '84, Cinema 86

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1